A little loop in Tibet

After we leave Lijian, the next stop is Kanding. Here we have the definite impression of entering Tibet. More; the altitude of 3000+ gives us a shortbreathness which add the "Tibetan Plateau" feeling of it all! 

Our first tibetan "Gompa"...we stand in awe when we got the first glimpse of it around the corner...

Breakdown with a view, on the road from Kanding to Litang...a few 4000+passes...and a near empty road. Luckily, when we broke down, another bus stopped to help us and wait to make sure we could start again...I didn't want to spend a freezing night up here!!! 

One of the home stay on the road...just like sleeping inside a temple!

Flowers, animals, mythical scenes...golden and colorful painting for beautiful dreams!!!

LITANG

Litang is a little town on a green plateau, surrounded by rolling hills and dotted by black tents and yack herds...only the hills here are 4600m high and the people who live in the tents are Khampa (tibetan) nomads, from the old Kham Kindom.

We are now deep into the real Tibet...

Some of you who have a map will say that we are not; we are actually in Sichuan Province, China...let me give you a bit of historical background...

For a very long time, this whole area was populated by nomadic people, coming from mongolia or central asia. At one point a kindom organised itself around the Dalai Lama, and this kingdom included, along with the 3 regions which are now part of "Tibet" as we call it or "Autonomous Region of Tibet" as the chinese call it, the 2 areas now know as Province of Kham (in Sichuan Province, China) and Province of Amdo (in Qinqai province, China).

So these 2 area are actually part of Tibet, and, interestingly enough, the chinese have put less efforts is restraining the tibetan culture in those areas, where it seems to be still blooming.

Moreover the relationships between the chinese minority who live in the towns of the area and the tibetan majority seem to be quite peacful, a part from a few "hick ups" due to the chinese governement wanting to mine or deforest some sacred area...

But enough talking...I know you are eager to see beautiful pictures....

In the streets of Litang...

The locals are reknowed for their horse riding skills...but nowadays they prefer their motorbike!

I can understand tem...I'm not sure any horse will accept a loud stereo playing techno on their saddle!!!!

They still ornament beatifully their bikes; ribbons, flowers, colorful saddle cover...

Even the monks have their motorbikes!

Here a member of the Yellow Hats sect...I wonder why this name?

Around the temple...

An important person (a rinpoche was in town at the time) a the yellow hat sect.

I was actually taking a polaroid-instant picture of him and the other monk, when Rom took this pic.

THe monks where so avid of getting their pictures taken...there was even fights between them!

I couldn't believe so much materialism in a religion that is supposed to be detached from the terrestrial belongings.

Once again, I have only a partial understanding of this type of Buddhism, which is really different from the one we saw in Thailand, Cambodia and Laos!

A pilgrim and her (gran?) daughter, who sports the beatiful hairdo of the tibetan girls; many braids and beads! 

I find it fascinating to roll the prayer wheels...I'm still a big kid, you know?!

In the prairie

Nomads tent and yacks being milked...beautiful and timeless sights... 

Nomad Yacks herdess...happy to meet us and show us their skill at the throwing of stones with hand held catapluts

A little nomad girl, trying my glasses...big laugh from all the kids around us.

They invited us in one of the tents for a yack butter tea and a bit of tsampa (barley flour)

Very poor and dirty, but so welcoming and merry!!!

At the top of our hike; 4800m high.

You know what, this is the eight of the Mont BLanc, highest summit in Europe

We feel quite proud...and breathless!!!!

Also in Litang, we were able to see a "Sky Burial", where a priest cuts the body into pieces, which are then fed to undreds of vultures coming down from the hills. It takes less than 1h for them to eat the flesh, afterward the bones are crushed, mixed with Tsampa and fed to the sacred birds.

This might sounds harsh but let's think about it; in a country were the ground is frozen 9 months a year and there is no trees for incineration...what is the best way?

Of course, we didn't come too close to the burial, and took no pictures, but just so you get the feeling for it, here's a picture a vultures eating a dead horse...

TAGONG

After a few days in Litang, we went to another village, even more remote in the plains...The town is full of pilgrim and nomads, and the streets are a never endind cat walk of tibetan outfits, long coats and braided hairs, jewellry, long knifes, hand held prayer wheels and horses!

View of the sacred Mont Yala...which is forbidden to climb due to fights between the tibetans whos protect it as a sacred pilgimage place and the chinese administration who wants to mine it...

Tagong main street

Tagong Shopping center!!!

Pilgrims having a break before there xth tour around the manastery

One of the shoppers...I love their hair style; long thick shinny black hairs, braided with red wool, wrapped around the head and pinned with silver-coral rings...for men and women alike!!!

KANDING

Our last stop before Chengdu, Kanding, is already nearly 100% chinese...but some tibetan are still seen here and there.

The surronding mountains and the river flowing right from the mountains to the city center, give it nonetheless a little charm...

CHENGDU

We are now in Chengdu, which is going to be home for the next 6 months...we've been busy registrating at university, finding a flat (which has a guest room...anybody?...) and doing the usual "settling down" cores...

In august, we will go back to Tibet for 1 month, with my dad, to enjoy more splendid scenery, smily "tachidelê" (good fortune in tibetan) and some hiking as high as we can....

05:37 - 16/07/2007 - Ajouter un commentaire